Birding Pictures

Dark-eyed Junco–“I’m so pretty!”

The Juncos we saw in California looked very different from our Slate-colored Juncos in Pennsylvania. They are of the Oregon race and have a slate-colored hood, but they also have brown and reddish sides and back. I had been trying all week to get a decent picture of one, and lo and behold, there was one sitting on the car door of the car next to us when we parked at a restaurant in Big Sur. I’ve seen birds carry on like this during springtime when they see their reflection in our windows because they are feeling territorial. I’m not sure why this one was being territorial in fall, but he put on quite a show!